Seychelles

Try to avoid any dark lanes, and always be careful not to leave your bag unattended. Swimming alone on isolated beaches is not advisable. If you sail, avoid bringing valuables; if you have no choice, become adept at finding great hiding places.

There is some social activity along a secondary road behind Beau Vallon beach left from the Boathouse restaurant, but locals mostly seem content to admire their flashy cars and mostly ignore passers-by.

There are newly instituted tourist police stationed at every beach on Mahe and are easily recognizable by their blue or white golf shirts, with a tourist police badge sewn on.

They are very friendly and more than willing to help keep a good eye, even though you may not see them. They are honest and freely offer advice. Potential thieves are obvious mostly due to lurking and just stand out from the locals and tend to hide just off the beach or across the narrow streets near more out of the way beaches. Jail terms are stiff and are strictly enforced since the island makes lots of money from tourism.

Chikungunya virus is a disease spread by mosquitoes, and causes flu-like symptoms. It is increasing in concern and although it is rare to die from it, the joint pain it causes can last for months. Insect repellent can help deter mosquitoes but not much else can be done as a precaution. The disease is native to East Africa and occasionally is introduced and quickly eradicated.

Tap water is safe to drink in most areas of the Seychelles, but water quality is variable in undeveloped areas. It is recommended to drink bottled water only and to avoid bodies of fresh water like lakes, rivers, ponds, etc.

talk

Languages spoken in the Seychelles are Seychellois Creole, English and French. With the smallest ability in French you'll be able to get around just fine, and a little effort, even a few basic phrases, will assist.

contact

The Seychelles Tourism board is a great point of reference and they will be able to answer any and all questions you might have. Their website is www.seychelles.travel

respect

The environment is a treasured aspect of Seychelles and there are more than 1,000 recorded species of fish around the islands and Aldabra, just one of the islands, is home to the largest population of giant tortoises in the world.

Embassies/consulates

embassies/consulates

Netherlands

Glacis

261200

embassies/consulates

There are only six embassies/High Commisions and another dozen or so consulates. The Chinese embassy is an attraction itself while the multilevel, colonial-era Victoria House on the corner of Francis Rachel & State House Streets is home to several of these consulates.

embassies/consulates

France

Victoria House, Victoria

382500

embassies/consulates

Greece

Victori

+248 373050

embassies/consulates

India

Le Chantier

4610301

embassies/consulates

Mauritius

Anse aux Pins

376441

embassies/consulates

Belgium

Victoria House, Victoria

224434

embassies/consulates

Norway

Victoria House, Victoria

225366

embassies/consulates

Sweden

New Port, Victoria

224710

embassies/consulates

Switzerland

Victoria

371050

embassies/consulates

United Kingdom

Oliaji Trade Centre, Victoria

225225

embassies/consulates

United States

Victoria House, Victoria

225189

Content tagged with wikitravel is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 license. A list of contributors is available at the original article on Wikitravel.